The y[G]oung boy was older and [D]wiser by then, but somethin' just pulled him that [A]way

He'd taken the money, the [D]gun, and the watch, the [G]gambler had need for no [D]more

Then he [G]tipped back his hat and he [D]crawled off his horse and headed for Aunt Jessie's [A]door

This would be his first [Em]whore [A][D][G]

[D]Women all gathered a[Em]round him, [A]marveled how young he must [D]be

The [G]kid picked him one, [D]went for her room, when she gracefully led him [A]away

It was his turn to [Em]play [A][D][G]

A [D]month's worth of wages he [Em]spent there, [A]that's where he figured he'd [D]stay

The [G]woman he'd picked was the [D]best of the lot, older and wiser than [A]he

Try as she may she [D]still fell in love, [G]started to lay back her [D]pay

They would marry some [Em]day [A][D][G]

[D]One night while dustin' his c[Em]lothes off, she [A]noticed the watch by her [D]bed

She [G]knew the man who be[D]longed to that watch, somehow she knew he was [A]dead

She was barely fifteen when she [D]met him, and [G]bore him a son on the [D]trail

The [G]baby got left in the [D]fork of a tree and he dragged her off sicker than [A]hell

She escaped him some[Em]how [A][D][G][D]

[D]When she asked the kid 'bout his b[Em]irthplace, she [A]teared up and started to [D]cry

She [G]held him and hugged him and [D]kissed him, and told him to leave her that [A]night

The kid pulled himself into man[D]hood, s[G]aved him a measure of p[D]ride

[G]Mother and son bid each o[D]ther goodbye, she waved as he rode out of s[A]ight

She raised the [Em]kid [A][D][G][D]

On the old Rio Grande around midnight, the young boy had fallen asleepThe old yeller dog he found on the trail lay curled in a ball at his feetThe cowpokes was all drunk and wasted in a town right close to the herdWhen a hurricane wind come blowin' in, there weren't time to give 'em no wordSt. Elmo's fire lit up the herd, turned 'em and turned 'em to oneWhen they plowed thru the town with the eeriest sound, not a single soul there was sparedNot a soul there was spared

The young boy went whippin' and ridin' into the darkness of nightThe cookie's young steed was a hell of a ride and the saddle bags bulged on each sideHe rode northeast toward the sunrise that came when the wind died awayThe saddle bags held all the cookie had come by, beef jerky, a gun, and his payIt was the kid's lucky day

Evan McGuire was a gambler, cheater of cards was his tradeA horseless carriage that ran out of gas last night was a part of his wageThe trail was right lonesome that mornin, nary a soul was in sightWhen the young boy rode up the gambler took aim, figurin' to take the kid's rideHis bullet went strange like the life he had led, it just wasn't his lucky dayWith his life he did pay

The kid rifled thru his belongin's, never had killed him no manThe cookie's pistol was weathered and worn but it brought down a hard one that dayThe kid rode away

Aunt Jessie's Chicken Farm waited, on those seekin' comfort and playThe young boy was older and wiser by then, but somethin' just pulled him that wayHe'd taken the money, the gun, and the watch, the gambler had need for no moreThen he tipped back his hat and he crawled off his horse and headed for Aunt Jessie's doorThis would be his first whore

Women all gathered around him, marveled how young he must beThe kid picked him one, went for her room, when she gracefully led him awayIt was his turn to play

A month's worth of wages he spent there, that's where he figured he'd stayThe woman he'd picked was the best of the lot, older and wiser than heTry as she may she still fell in love, started to lay back her payThey would marry some day

One night while dustin' his clothes off, she noticed the watch by her bedShe knew the man who belonged to that watch, somehow she knew he was deadShe was barely fifteen when she met him, and bore him a son on the trailThe baby got left in the fork of a tree and he dragged her off sicker than hellShe escaped him somehow

When she asked the kid 'bout his birthplace, she teared up and started to cryShe held him and hugged him and kissed him, and told him to leave her that nightThe kid pulled himself into manhood, saved him a measure of prideMother and son bid each other goodbye, she waved as he rode out of sightShe raised the kid